POWERS, HARRIET (29 October 1837–1 January 1 1910), Black artist and one of the best-known African American quiltmakers, largely underappreciated in the art historical canon. Powers was born into slavery in Athens, Georgia, but was emancipated after the Civil War (April 12, 1861–April 9, 1865), subsequently becoming a landowner and familial matriarch. Although only two of her quilts survive today, they have established Powers at the forefront of Black folk artistry and storytelling. Both quilts were created after the Civil War; each contained rich appliqué techniques in pictorial squares embodying various spiritual and religious beliefs, as well as a hybridization of African American and West African design.
Powers demonstrated creativity and artistic talent from a young age. She learned traditional African American folktales, religious stories, and historical narratives passed down within her community. These stories would later become central themes in her quilt designs. During her lifetime Powers gained recognition for her extraordinary quilts; her most famous works were made in the late nineteenth century and are now considered masterpieces of American folk art. The first, “Bible Quilt,” was sold to a female artist and teacher for five dollars; it is currently displayed at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. Eleven squares carefully depict several biblical stories, including Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, Noah’s Ark, and the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Before selling this quilt, Powers orally dictated the meaning behind each panel, all of which were meticulously crafted with vibrant fabric appliqués, illustrating Powers’ skill as both a quilter and a storyteller. Powers’ second work, “Pictorial Quilt,” also depicts biblical stories, but interwoven with real-life events. This work is displayed at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. In the center of “Pictorial Quilt,” Powers depicts several falling stars, documenting an astral event of November 13, 1833, that led people to believe that the apocalypse was upon them. Powers’ quilts gained recognition beyond her local community when they were exhibited at the Athens Cotton Fair in 1886 and the Georgia State Fair in 1888. Her work attracted attention for its artistic merit and cultural significance, challenging prevailing stereotypes about African American creativity and craftsmanship. Her quilts are celebrated for their artistic innovation, technical skill, and cultural resonance, offering insights into the lived experiences and creative expressions of African Americans in the post–Civil War South. Moreover, Powers’ quilts are also seen as acts of “subversive stitching”—a typically feminized practice in art associated with resistance, resilience, and creative agency. Her practice is particularly notable when put into context with the fact that she most likely learned it from her enslaved ancestors of West Africa. West African and Beninese influences can be seen in the lines of her design technique of appliqué and narratives, particularly in the inconsistent proportions of the panels that allude to syncopation in African tribal music.